FAQs

Q: It says on the WC Sports website that "juniors will play in their designated age group if not selected into the 1st XI”. Does this apply to Hockey?
A: Hockey is a small sport that does not offer an U15 grade like a lot of the larger codes (rugby, football etc). Hockey therefore selects all teams on merit, whilst being mindful of players' developmental needs.

Q. My team won our grade last season.  Does that mean I will get to stay in the same team, or move up a team?
A: There is no guarantee that any player will be in the same team last year, or that you can’t go up or down. Everyone develops at different ages, some boys train really hard over summer, and there are always new players coming into the school at various year levels. Given all the variables, the fairest thing on everyone is to select afresh every year.

Q. Do I have to trial?
A. No one has to trial.  If you would rather not trial just let us know and we’ll place you into one of the lower grade teams that we think is best suited to you based on the information you have given to us.

Q. I was in an U13 rep team last year.  What team am I likely to be in this year at College?
A. It is important to remember that more than 1/3 of Wellington College hockey players have played in Wellington rep teams, and also that players develop at different ages and stages.  Size is another factor, as the Secondary P1 & 2 grades are contested exclusively by other schools’ 1^st XIs - ours is usually one of the only school with a 2^nd XI in P2, and sometimes a 3rd XI as well. Boys coming into Y9 who have played in U13 reps teams have in the past been selected into the 3^rd, 4^th or 5^th XIs, and a lot of boys who played P1 Primary have started in the 6th XI. It does vary a lot from year to year.

Q. I am unhappy with the team that I was selected into after trials.  Is there anything I can do about that?
A. Wellington College Hockey runs a very robust trial process.  However, we will sometimes get things wrong, and for that reason do not finalise our teams until the end of the first round.  Your coach will let the Committee know if it appears a player has clearly been placed incorrectly, and the Committee will work with the coaches to agree final placings.